Massive fire destroys Brazil’s National Museum

Late on September 2, 2018, fire broke out in Brazil’s Museu de Nacional in Rio de Janeiro. One of the largest natural history museums in Latin America, this 200-year-old museum housed priceless treasures of South America’s cultural heritage. More than 20 million artifacts, most believed destroyed, included rare fossils and audio recordings of languages no longer spoken by living tribes. Scholars and others are blaming the Brazilian government. They are saying that years of budget cuts and delays in renovations left the museum vulnerable to fire. Brazilians are sad and angry.